Taking a shot at ranking greatest NBA players over the last 40 years

By Mac Aljancic Times-Reporter sports correspondent

Monday

May 7, 2018 at 7:08 AMMay 7, 2018 at 8:46 AM

Early this spring, I wrote articles ranking the 10 greatest and most popular Cleveland athletes over the last 40 years (40 years because that spans my life as a witnessing sports fan). After a lot of good feedback, arguments, and suggestions from readers, I decided to start including more "10 over 40" lists.

With the NBA Playoffs in full gear, I am going to tackle listing the greatest NBA players over the last 40 years. Beside each player’s name I listed: number of times 1st team All-NBA; number of times 2nd team All-NBA; number of NBA MVP Awards. I valued playing greatness over longevity and championships, but those latter two are also factored in. And, with so many great players, I expanded my list a bit.

15. Charles Barkley (4-time 1st team NBA/4-time 2nd team NBA/1 MVP). In his 16 seasons, "The Round Mound of Rebound" muscled his way to career averages of 22.1 points and 11.7 rebounds. Playing much bigger than his actual 6-foot-6 height, he was a forefather to today’s undersized big men, like Draymond Green.

14. Julius Erving (5/1/1): My all-time favorite player is one of several on this list who would rank much higher if it covered 50 years. He averaged 28.7 points and 12.1 rebounds during his five-year American Basketball Association (ABA) career in the early 1970s, winning three MVPs. Dr. J’s legendary high-flying athletic skills transformed the NBA into what it is today.

13. Moses Malone (4/3/3): This great rebounder joined the ABA out of high school for two seasons. In his first 11 NBA seasons, he averaged 24 points and 14.6 rebounds.

12. Steph Curry (2/2/2): Curry's lack of longevity kept him from ranking higher. I believe he is clearly the greatest shooter in NBA history. He has the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 5th highest totals in NBA history for 3-pointers made in a season. His accuracy and range have revolutionized the game at all levels by making the 3-point shot the main course for most offenses.

11. Karl Malone (11/2/2): I fell in love with "The Mailman" when he scorched Ohio State in the 1985 NCAA tournament. He was the 13th pick in the 1985 draft. Cleveland bypassed him with the 9th pick and ended up with Keith Lee. The muscular Malone finished his career as the second leading scorer in NBA history.

10. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (4/4/1). If I included his eight seasons prior to 1978, he would be near the top of this list. For his entire career, he was 1st team All-NBA 10 times, 2nd team 9 times, won 6 MVP awards, and made 10 NBA Finals, winning six. He became the NBA’s all-time leading scorer as a beautifully skilled center with his deadly trademark -- the sky hook.

9. Tim Duncan (10/3/2). Many would rank him higher, but his lack of "sexy" play holds him back on my list. "The Big Fundamental" was the model of consistency, averaging 19.0 points and 10.8 rebounds over his 19-year career, and led the Spurs to five NBA titles.

8. Kevin Durant (5/1/1). He’ll likely move up this list with time. He has averaged 27.1 points during his 11-year career. He has completely changed the game by playing on the perimeter like a guard (he has a career 1,433 3-point makes) at a height of nearly 7-foot. The NBA has been flooded in recent years with long, athletic shooters, who grew up emulating Durant's perimeter play instead of being anchored to the block.

7. Hakeem Olajuwon (6/3/1): He didn’t start playing basketball until the age of 17, but "The Dream" averaged 24 points and 12 rebounds in his first 13 seasons. Over his career, he transformed himself from an inside brute to a skilled player, mystifying defenders with his “Dream Shake" moves.

6. Shaquille O’Neal (8/2/1). Very athletic at 7-foot-1 and 325 pounds, Shaq truly was a larger-than-life freak of nature. In his first 11 seasons, he averaged 27.6 points and 12.1 rebounds. He was pretty much un-guardable, causing teams to employ the "Hack-a-Shaq" philosophy (he was a 53-percent free throw shooter) to slow him down.

5. Kobe Bryant (11/2/1). "The Black Mamba" was one of the great scorers in NBA history, averaging 25 points during his 20-year career. He was a huge part of five L.A. Laker Championships, but he was a gunner first, and his 44.7-percent career shooting pales with those ahead of him on this list.

4. Magic Johnson (8/1/3). At 6-foot-9, he was the NBA’s first oversized point guard. With a career scoring average of 19.5 points, he was never a huge scorer. He averaged over 20 points in just four seasons, but he could dish the ball like no one else. He still has the best career assist average in NBA history (11.2 per game), a number which is higher than 14 of the last 20 NBA season assist leaders. In his 11 full seasons, he helped lead the L.A. Lakers to the NBA Finals nine times.

3. Larry Bird (9/1/3). Many lists rank Magic ahead of him, but as an opposing fan, I feared (and hated) Bird much more than Magic, who had a better supporting cast (Jabbar and James Worthy easily top Robert Parrish and Kevin McHale). "Larry Legend" was first-team All-NBA his first nine seasons, before a bad back slowed him down. He averaged 25.1 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 6.1 assists during that span. He was a beautiful passer and a deadly, clutch perimeter shooter (49.6-percent career shooting). If the game was on the line and I needed someone to make a final perimeter shot, he’s my guy.

1.3. LeBron (11/2/4). Notice that I ranked him slightly higher than No. 2, because he is gradually closing the gap on his idol and fellow uniform No. 23. His career averages are jaw-dropping: 27.2 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 7.2 assists. He is a beautiful passer, and a phenomenal defender and shot blocker when needed. As a 6-foot-8, 250-pound athletic freight train, he is probably the most impressive athletic human being EVER.

1. Michael Jordan (10/1/5). In his 13 years as a Chicago Bull, he averaged 31.5 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 6.3 assists. He was simply unstoppable on offense. He could hit the 3-pointer, had a deadly pull-up jumper (ask the Cavs' Craig Ehlo), and was amazing when driving to the hoop. People also forget that he was a great defender, earning All-NBA defense honors nine times (LeBron has six). In his last six full seasons in Chicago (remember his baseball sabbatical of almost two years), he won the NBA Championship each time, averaging 33.6 points per game. MJ was at his best, and the best, when the pressure was the highest.

I always felt that Jordan’s trump card over LeBron was that MJ was a much better closer at the end of games. James, though, has been unbelievable throughout in this year’s playoffs, including two tremendously difficult game-winning buzzer beater shots. King James is getting pretty close to taking Air Jordan’s throne.

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